Israel’s army is formulating a number of options to eradicate rocket fire coming from Gaza, “including ground assault,” an anonymous Israeli official stated on Tuesday.

“The army is preparing for all possible scenarios, including an invasion or a ground operation,” the official told the AFP agency.

Israeli Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon said on Tuesday: “We are preparing for action against Hamas, which will not end within a few days,” according to RT’s Paula Slier from the Israeli/Gaza border area.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had instructed the military earlier in the day to “take off the gloves,” with one source claiming he told the IDF to “go all the way.” …At least 14 people were injured as the Israeli Air Force carried out airstrikes against Hamas targets.

Six Palestinians have been killed and a further 25 have been injured in an Israeli assault on a house in the Gaza strip, the Palestinian Interior Ministry reported on Tuesday

Jerusalem (CNN) — An Israeli security operation against the militant group Hamas “will probably not end within several days,” Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon said Tuesday.

The development appeared to confirm fears that the conflict would continue to escalate.

“We will not tolerate rocket fire and we are prepared to expand the operation and to exact a heavy toll on Hamas,” he said.…Hamas security sources reported at least 60 Israeli airstrikes across Gaza, including from F-16s, Apache helicopters and drones. At least 24 people were wounded, Palestinian medical sources in Gaza said.

Seven people have been killed in Gaza since Monday afternoon, including five in an airstrike on a vehicle, Palestinian medical sources said. Officials identified at least one as a Hamas militant. The latest deaths bring the total killed in Gaza since Sunday to 15, at least nine of them militants, according to Palestinian officials.